Tierra Paisa

Tierra Paisa is a fertile and verdant swath of land that includes not only the massive department of Antioquia, but also Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío, taking up most of the area known as the Eje Cafetero.

As you would expect, inhabitants of the Tierra Paisa are referred to as paisas, and they are considered among the friendliest and hardest working Colombians. In fact, paisas are known throughout Colombia for their proactive business sense, including arguably the most famous of the paisas, former President Álvaro Uribe Vélez.

Keeping with their nature, paisas have successfully established all types of high-yield industries in the region, such as coffee growing, coal mining and commerce, making it an economic powerhouse within Colombia.

In recent years, paisas have actively promoted their land as one for tourism, and with good reason: The area is strewn with beautiful colonial villages with whitewashed walls striving to keep their cultural heritage alive.

Medellín is the region’s capital and a major tourist destination, but there are other sites in the region that are worth a visit. These include the Gulf of Urabá on the Caribbean coast, the scenery in and around the coffee town of Salento in Quindío, the colonial masterpiece of Santa Fe de Antioquia, and the towns of Manizales, Pereira and Armenia.